Since my first novel, The Pecan Man, a self-published work of Southern fiction, has been selling well enough to support me as a writer, I am often asked what the secret to my success is and if I will share my marketing strategy to achieve those results. Here’s the thing: The only strategy I had was to write a book that people wanted to read. Amazon’s algorithms and word-of-mouth by readers did the rest.
I am an outspoken advocate for self-publishing. Though I have been writing most of my life, I got started belatedly on a writing career when I published my first novel through Amazon’s Kindle and CreateSpace programs. Sales for The Pecan Man are hovering around 5000 books per month and my royalties are 70% of my list price on paperback and digital copies. Since self-publishing, I have obtained an agent who found me through Amazon and sold my audio rights to Blackstone, who produced a wonderful audiobook read by award-winning actress and narrator Suzanne Toren.
I don’t have marketing advice to share, but I do have some writing strategies which may help make your writing more marketable.
My reviews on Amazon revealed one resounding theme from readers: they love and connect with the characters. They care what happens to them and feel they know them personally. So when Robin Ingle asked me to contribute something on character development for the WAG blog, I knew exactly what I wanted to share.
The stories I write are almost always character-driven. Don’t ask me about outlining or plot; my characters decide what happens and when. I’m just along for the ride. There are several character development techniques I always employ to tell my characters’ stories.
I start with a name. Writers often overlook this crucial detail, choosing uncomplicated or common names with the idea that this will make the character more appealing to readers. I believe that a reader’s first visual impression of a character comes directly from the name. Names like Abraham Wren, Wyatt Baggs or Moot Sweeney conjure up strong male characters for me. Characters called Annabeth Moon, Lottie Breedlove, or Noella Moody help readers get a mental picture with or without narrative descriptions. When I read a story whose characters are named John, Sue, Mike and Bill, I find myself unable to keep them straight.
Often, before I start writing, I know what my characters look like, what kind of clothes or shoes they wear, if they are neat and meticulous, or careless with their appearance. I know what kinds of car they drive, what styles of house they live in, and what they eat for breakfast. Even if I never use them in the story, I bring the characters to life in my mind by knowing most of the following details:
Physical characteristics
- Obvious ones like gender, race, height, build, hair and eye color, age.
- Not so obvious traits – scars, tattoos, physical limitations, deformities
- General health, physical abilities, uncommon abilities
- Ethnic traits that are central to the character’s history
Family history:
- Parents, siblings, grandparents. Children? Married? Divorced?
- Geographic information – not necessarily setting
- Where raised? Where living now? State? City? Country? Tiny town? Isolated? Neighborhood? Condo? Barn?
- Where have they been? Military? Same town forever? Traveled abroad? Moved a lot? Running from some place? Out of place and looking for home?
Character, Morality, etc.
- Religious, non-religious, morally rigid, good-hearted, well-intentioned, careless, evil, morally ambiguous?
- Tee-totaler, drunk, occasional glass of wine, beer, liquor?
- Sexual morality: loose, careful, monogamous, faithful, blurred lines?
- Social morality: hardened criminal, youthful offender, bully, good guy, hero, gossip, gentle, kind?
- Are their personalities the same in public as in private? Racist, bigoted, tolerant, liberal, conservative, unaware, politically active or apathetic?
- If the character was in trouble, would it be of his or her own making?
- What would cause your character to do something OUT of character?
Aspirations:
- What do your characters value in life?
- What do they want and cannot have?
- What are they willing to do ANYTHING to get?
- For whom are they willing to die? Live? Change? Sacrifice?
- Who are they willing to hurt, kill, destroy?
- Whom do they love? Like? Hate? Desire? Miss? Trust? Distrust?
- What are they willing to risk to get what they want or need?
Emotional health:
- What are they most afraid of? Ashamed of?
- What emotional traumas have they suffered? What are their triggers?
- What inspires them emotionally?
- Are they happy, sad, depressed, positive, negative, inspiring, or competitive?
- Introvert or extrovert? Vulnerable or closed-off?
This can seem like a daunting list, but if you think about the people you know best in your life, you will realize that you know characters of all types. Ask yourself these questions about your spouse or sister or best friend and you will begin to see how you innately know the answers without writing them down. Now ask yourself these questions about your characters. Do you know the answers? If not, your characters may not be flesh and blood on paper.
The characters I write are never one specific person, but certain traits are often pulled from people I have known. If you formulate characters using real emotions, real experiences, real desires, you will have characters that draw readers in. And if you put those characters into situations that test their moral standards, challenge their emotional well-being, and are absolutely necessary and seemingly impossible to overcome, you will have a plot and a story that will hold your reader spellbound.
I will end with this thought: Don’t worry about how you will market your work until it is finished. Just tell your story. Be honest and engaging. Create authentic characters. Trust your readers. And write. Always write.
